For fun, I like to research potential amp upgrades for the LRS. Stumbled across a December 2020 Herb Reichert Stereophile review of the new Marantz Model 30 integrated. Class D (Hypex NC500), 200 wpc into 4 ohms. Are Marantz amps known to be able to drive Maggies? The Model 30 has piqued my interest because of the article. It’s made in Japan, and instead of a DAC, has a phono stage - which is great for me because I use an outboard DAC. It can be run as an integrated, or as a preamp only (disables the power amp side), or as a power amp only (disables the preamp side), has HT bypass - looks amazing to me, and only costs $2600.
My sights have been set on the $4000 Hegel H190. Is Herb prone to delusional exaggeration? Could the Marantz Model 30 be a good match for the LRS? Here’s a quote form the article:
"I’d been enjoying the Marantz Model 30 with every speaker I tried, including the 15 ohm Falcons, but with the $1400/pair Magnepan .7 quasi-ribbon panel speakers, my heart started pounding in my chest and heart emojis spewed forth into the room. The Model 30’s Hypex-based amplifier seemed to come alive with the 4 ohm Magnepan load. Stravinsky Conducts Histoire Du Soldat Suite (LP, Columbia MS 7093), traced by the humble Zu Denon moving coil, had me laughing, muttering “oh my God,” shaking my head, thinking, if this is how an approximately $6k hi-fi sounds, who needs more?
The Maggie-Marantz combo made sound images that were tall and precisely mapped. It was pure stay-up-late pleasure to gaze into their holographic enticements. Listening to Neil Young’s soundtrack to Jim Jarmusch’s film Dead Man (16/44.1 FLAC, Vapor Records/Qobuz), the Marantz Model 30 powering the .7 Magnepan panels took me further and more clearly into the dark campfire conversations of William Blake (Johnny Depp) and Nobody (Gary Farmer) than I had ever been before. The Marantz and Maggie .7 combo pulled out shovelsful of previously hidden subtleties.
I believe you’d have to spend at least $10k more to beat the LSD detail, CinemaScope soundstage, Technicolor tone, and nuanced dynamics of the Marantz integrated driving the .7 Magnepans.
The Marantz Model 30 is clearly a speaker-friendly amplifier."